1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to heat dissipation devices, and particularly to a heat dissipation device having a heat pipe for cooling an electronic component, such as an integrated circuit package.
2. Description of Related Art
Electronic components, such as central processing units (CPUs) comprise numerous circuits operating at high speed and generating substantial heat. Under most circumstances, it is necessary to cool the CPUs in order to maintain safe operating conditions and assure that the CPUs function properly and reliably. In the past, various approaches have been used to cool electronic components. Typically, a finned metal heat sink is attached to an outer surface of the CPU to remove the heat therefrom. The heat absorbed by the heat sink is then dissipated to ambient air. The related finned metal heat sink is made of highly heat-conductive metal, such as copper or aluminum, and generally comprises a base for contacting the CPU to absorb the heat therefrom and a plurality of fins formed on the base for dissipating the heat. However, as the operating speed of electronic components has increased markedly in recent years, such a related heat sink, which transfers the heat only by metal conduction, is not competent for dissipating so much heat any more. The heat of the bottom of the metal heat sink can not be transferred to the whole heat dissipation device quickly, and especially can not be transferred to the fins far away from the bottom of the metal heat sink.
Heat pipes, which operate by phase change of working liquid sealed in a hollow pipe, have been widely used due to their excellent heat transfer properties. Accordingly, heat dissipation devices equipped with heat pipes are devised in various manners and widely used. How to enable the heat dissipation device equipped with heat pipes to have an optimal performance becomes a goal that persons skilled in the art endeavor to achieve.
Accordingly, what is needed is a heat dissipation device with heat pipes which has an enhanced heat dissipation performance.